WCEL Mentorship Programme

Mentorship programmes play a crucial role in providing valuable guidance on complex environmental issues, connecting aspiring lawyers with influential individuals, transferring practical skills and expertise, and preserving institutional knowledge. By participating in mentorship programmes, aspiring environmental lawyers can enhance their professional growth and contribute to the advancement of this important area of law.

This project allows early-career professionals to exchange information and receive guidance from more senior professionals within the Commission. In general terms, there are limited opportunities for early-career graduates and practitioners in the field of environmental law to find a mentor who can share their experiences and provide advice on specific subject areas.

To address this mentorship gap, the project will consist of two tracks: One-on-one Direct Mentorship and Early Career Talks.

1. One-on-one direct mentorship: In this track, a call for mentors will be shared with WCEL specialist groups and task forces to nominate interested mentors. The request will include the prospective mentors' availability to schedule at least two one-on-one meetings with a mentee. A mentor may also select their interest to be paired with one or more mentees. Similarly, a call for individuals interested in mentorship meetings will be shared with ECSG members. Criteria for pairing mentors and mentees will include the area of expertise and professional interests. Once participants express their interest in participating in the Programme, mentors and mentees will be paired up, introduced to each other, and requested to schedule the meetings. Mid-year and end-year reminders will be sent to the participants, and participants will be asked to fill out a survey and report on the lessons learned and areas for improvement for the Mentorship Program.
    
2. Early-career talks: In this track, quarterly career talks will be held to promote further exchange between the ECSG and other WCEL Specialist Groups. Each WCEL Specialist Group will be invited to nominate a speaker for an informal career talk. The speaker will be invited to share information about her/his career journey and choices made at various inflection points, which may include details about her/his current role, socio-cultural background, influences and opportunities, and other factors that the speaker considers led to their eventual place in the work environment. The talks will be followed by an interactive Q&A session.

Are you interested in participating in the programme as a mentor or mentee, or in learning more? Please get in touch with the project co-leads: Ms. Ishwarya Kandasamy and Ms. Jiya Matharani, or the Mentorship Programme Team.

About the project co-leads

Ms. Ishwarya Kandasamy is a young legal practitioner from India with an integrated bachelor’s in Law and Political Science. She is a Global Policy, Diplomacy, and Sustainability (GPODS) Fellow and a member of YOUNGO. She is also a writer, researcher, and public speaker. Her work primarily revolves around the intersection of climate laws and policies and climate justice. She has contributed to two books on sustainable mining and Access and Benefit Sharing Mechanisms by the State Policy Commission and the National Biodiversity Authority of India, respectively.

Ms. Jiya Matharani is a professor at the Gujarat Law Society University (India). She is a public speaker, author, and academic with a Ph.D. in Biodiversity Law. Jiya is actively involved with various non-governmental organizations at the national level, working on critical legal environmental justice issues. She coordinates an Environmental Law Clinic and is recognized for her research and dynamic presentations at international and national conferences. Her work primarily focuses on the intersection of environmental law and policy.